Aerating device



Nov. 4, 1941. DITNER 2,261,830

AERATING DEVICE Filed March 4, 1940 FIG I INVENTOR /7 L 0&5/1/5 fl/T/VEI? Patented Nov. 4, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIQE AERATING DEVICE Aloysius Ditner, Rochester, N. Y.

Application March 4, 1940, Serial No. 322,112

2 Claims.

This invention relates to aerating devices for aerating the water in fish containers such as minnow buckets, aquariums etc. and the principal object of this invention is to provide a novel structure for such a device so that it is applicable for eflicient aeration of the water on substantially any form of fish container.

This and other objects and attendant advantages of the invention will become more readily apparent from the detailed description thereof which follows, reference being had to the accompanying drawing in which Figure 1 is a front elevation of the aerating device.

Figure 2 is a side elevation and partial section thereof as it appears mounted in a double minnow bucket, the bucket being shown in section and partly broken away.

Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 33 of Figure 1.

The aerating device, forming the subject matter of my invention, comprises the upright bracket I from which projects the supporting member 2 at the back thereof. An angle bracket 3 is pivotally mounted near the outer end of the supporting member on the under side thereof and a in this angle bracket is threaded the clamping bolt 4 with which the aerating device may be firmly and adjustably clamped in place as will hereinafter be described.

At the top of the upright bracket I is carried the electric motor 5 and in front of the upright bracket parallel thereto is journaled the drive shaft 6 substantially in line with the armature shaft I of the motor 5. Two bearings 8 and 9 revolvably support the shaft 6 on the bracket, one near the top and the other at the bottom thereof. A coil spring l0 serves as a flexible coupling between the shaft 6 and the armature shaft 1 for the rotation of th shaft 6 by the motor. Suitable collars II, II on the shaft 6, one at the top and the other at the bottom of the bearing 8, hold the shaft against endwise The impeller blades of the rotor force the water from the pump housing thru the outlet 19 and raise it in the pipe 20 to have the water issue under pressure from thenozzle end 2| at the top of the pipe.

Supported on the bracket I so as to project outwardly therefrom and surround a portion of the shaft 6 and the nozzle end of the pipe 20 is an open bottom chamber 22. A trough 23 is formed at the outer end along the bottom edge of the chamber 22 and in the bottom of this trough are spacedly arranged a series of holes 24, 24 substantially the full length of the trough. The nozzle end of the pipe 20 is so arranged in the chamber 22 that water issuing from it strikes the under side of the downwardly slanting top of the chamber and is evenly distributed thereon for preliminary aeration in the chamber and deflection into the trough 23.

As illustrated in the figures the opening in the top of the chamber 22 thru which the shaft 6 and bearing 8 extends, is enlarged to provide a restricted opening for the admission of air into the chamber directly behind the nozzle 2| and it has been found in practice that the stream of water which issues from the nozzle under pressure creates a partial vacuum in the chamber at this point and causes air to be drawn thru this opening into the chamber for eflicient aeration of the water as it impinges against the top of the chamber and is deflected thereby.

When the water is forced from the nozzle at considerable pressure it is deflected toward the I trough so that part of the water is forced out over the edge of the trough to form a water curtain across the bottom of the chamber thru which the partial vacuum created in the chamber causes air to be forced for further aeration of the water.

In the trough the water is divided into small streams which pass thru the holes 24 for further aeration of the water as it flows back in a plurality of small streams into the container. Excess water in the trough 23 which cannot pass thru the holes in the bottom thereof and is forced over the edge 25 of the trough, falls overthe edge in the form of a cascade back into the container for efficient aeration of the water.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that all water pumped from the container is efliciently spread over a large area in the chamber for preliminary aeration therein and then divided into a plurality ofsmall streams and cascades which drip back into the container by gravity for final aeration of the water.

The support of all members of the aerating nation with the novel support and clamping member makes the device mountable in a container either adjacent the wall or spaced from it. In the minnow bucket 26 illustratedin section in Figure 2 it is necessary to hold the aerating device centrally of the removable bucket section 21. The opening of this removable bucket section is surrounded by the float chamber II and is thus located in the center thereof. To provide for the attachment of the aerating device into the center of the bucket as illustrated in Figure 2, the angle bracket is placed so as to form an extemion of the supporting bracket in order to provide maximum space between the end of the clamping screw l and the back of the upright bracket I. In this way a portion of the top of the outer and inner bucket sections is bridged by the supporting member and its extension so that the clamping screw in its engagement with the outer wall of the bucket draws the upright bracket tightly against the edge of th opening in the center of the inner bucket section and holds the aerating device firmly anchored substantially centrally thereof.

When the aerating device is to be clamped closely against the inside of the wall of a single bucket, the angle bracket is movedinto the dotted line position illustrated in Figure 2 in which the depending portion of the angle bracket is located closely spaced from the back of the upright bracket to provide for the insertion of little mor than the thickness of the-wall of the bucket between the back of the upright bracket and the angle bracket. The clamping screw 8 in this way may be quickly tightened against the outside of the bucket to firmly hold the aerating device against the inner wall thereof.

I claim:

1. An aerating device for fish containers comprising an upright bracket, a supporting member on said upright bracket, a clamping member mounted to swing on said supporting member device on the single upright bracket I in combifor variable'spacing relative to the wall of the bracket and attachment thereto, a shaft rotatably mounted on said bracket, a motor supported on top of said bracket flexible coupling means connecting said motor with said shaft, pump means operated by said shaft at the bottom of said bracket, an open bottom chamber in front of said bracket and surrounding said shaft. a feed pipe leading from said pump means into said chamber, a trough along the edge of the open bottom of said: chamber having spaced holes in the bottom thereof, said feed pipe being arranged in said chamber to direct the water into said trough to cause the water to be aeratedin the chamber and substantially evenly distributed in said trough and broken up into separate stream by its discharge from the holes in said trough for additional aeration of the water in its flow back into the container, the inner edge of said trough providing for the overflow of water from the trough spaced from the holes in 1 the bottom thereof to cause the overflow water to be separately aerated in its trough.

2. In an aerating device for flsh'containers the combination of a supporting bracket adapted for attachment to the wall of the container, a combined water aerating and deflecting chamoverflow from the her having an open bottom supported on'said have the water deflected into the trough divided into a plurality of small streams by the holes in the trough and the remainder of th water forced upwardly over the edge of the trough.

Amysrus nrmm. 

